Guilty may pay registry fee

County Council votes to add $50

Sex and violent offenders in Vanderburgh County may pay annual registration and change-of-address fees starting in January.

The Vanderburgh County Council voted unanimously Wednesday to approve on first reading an ordinance requiring payment of the fees. If it is approved on second reading next month, it will take effect.

Sheriff Eric Williams said the $50 registration fee and $5 change-of-address fee together constitute "a classic user fee" that charges the 400-plus local offenders who use the service for its costs.

"There is a very small group who benefits from the registry, and when I say benefit, I mean their alternative is being in prison," Williams said after the council meeting. "Society has said, 'One condition of your being out in our community and not being in prison is you register.'"

Those classified as violent offenders include anyone who has ever been convicted of murder, manslaughter or human trafficking, or conspiring or attempting to commit those crimes, the sheriff said.

Williams told the County Council that there are slightly more than 400 on the sex and violent offender registry. But more should be on the list, he said, because they don't report in.

"There's still a significant number of people out there that should be on the registry that are not that we look for, but, you know, it's just a matter of time and the community helping," he said.

Williams said those offenders often move from jurisdiction to jurisdiction without changing their registration, making it difficult for law enforcement to know their whereabouts.

"Most agencies, they don't have the time and resources to take care of their own (offenders), let alone do a nationwide search to find out where the people that fell off the registry went," he said.

Williams said monitoring and maintenance of the sex and violent offender registry costs Vanderburgh County about $100,000 annually in personnel, administrative and equipment costs.

"I have a full-time deputy sheriff and a part-time clerk, that's all they do, maintain information and verify addresses," he said.

The registration and change-of-address fees could bring in about $20,000 annually, Williams said. He said that money could be used to make the part-time clerk a full-time employee, which he said would strengthen the registry.

Marsha Abell, president of the County Council, said she was initially concerned about the proposed change.

"I was a little concerned that charging a fee might cause someone to not register and we certainly want them to register," Abell told her council colleagues. "But I've talked this over with Sheriff Williams. He's going to monitor the situation, but he doesn't feel that that's going to be a detriment to it."

Williams said other counties and states have not had that problem.

"Ultimately, we want the people to know where these people are, and that they've registered properly," he said.